THE STEP BY STEP

DEVELOPMENT OF A
PRESENTATION
MIDTERM LESSONS
THE PREPARATION
Preparation is the single most important part of making a successful presentation. It is an
absolutely crucial foundation, and you should dedicate as much time to it as possible, avoiding
short-cuts. Good preparation will ensure that you have thought carefully about the messages that
you want (or need) to communicate in your presentation and it will also help boost your
confidence.

Read more at: https://www.skillsyouneed.com/present/prepare-presentation.html

THE SUBJECT
 The subject of your presentation or talk about comes from
the objective. They are linked, but they are not necessarily
exactly the same thing.
THE AUDIENCE
 Before preparing material for a presentation, it is worth considering your prospective audience.

 The size of the group or audience expected.

 The age range - a talk aimed at retired people will be quite different from one aimed at teenagers.

 Gender - will the audience be predominantly male or female?

 Is it a captive audience or will they be there out of interest?

 Will you be speaking in their work or leisure time?

 Do they know something about your subject already or will it be totally new to them? Is the subject part of their work?

 Are you there to inform, teach, stimulate, or provoke?

THE PLACE
 The size of the room;

 The seating arrangements (for example, theatre-style, with rows of seats; or round-table);

 The availability of equipment, e.g., microphone, laptop and projector, flip chart;

 The availability of power points and if an extension lead is required for any equipment you intend to use;

 If the room has curtains or blinds. This is relevant if you intend to use visual aids, and so that you can ensure the correct
ambiance for your presentation;

 The position of the light switches. Check if you need someone to help if you are using audio/visual equipment and need to
turn off the lights;

 The likelihood of outside distractions, e.g., noise from another room; and

 The availability of parking facilities so you do not have a long walk carrying any equipment you might need to take.
THE TIME
 There will often be no flexibility in the time of day that a presentation is made. However, it
does affect what you can do, and how you might organize your presentation, because of the
likely state of your audience
THE LENGTH OF
PRESENTATION
 Always find out how long you have to talk and check if this includes or excludes time for
questions.
I. PLANNING YOUR PRESENTATION
Step 1: Analyze your audience
AUDIENCE ANALYSIS
involves identifying the audience and adapting a speech to their interests, level of
understanding, attitudes, and beliefs. Taking an audience-centered approach is important
because a speaker's effectiveness will be improved if the presentation is created and delivered in
an appropriate manner.

The first step in preparing a presentation is to learn more about the audience to whom you'll be
speaking. It's a good idea to obtain some information on the backgrounds, values, and interests
of your audience so that you understand what the audience members might expect from your
presentation.
I. PLANNING YOUR PRESENTATION
Step 2: Selection of topic
Next, if possible select a topic that is of interest to the audience and to you. It will be much easier to deliver a
presentation that the audience finds relevant, and more enjoyable to research a topic that is of interest to you.

SOURCES OF TOPICS
 current events (newspapers, other media)
 personal experience
 your hobbies– Does your audience have an understanding of the basics of your hobby or the terms used in it?
 your work–Are there things that you have learned through your work that would be useful to people who are
not familiar with your profession?
 books you may have read recently
I. PLANNING YOUR PRESENTATION
Step 2: Selection of topic

Consider the following

1. Area of expertise
2. Area of interest
3. Scope of your Topic
I. PLANNING YOUR PRESENTATION
Step 3: Define the objective of the presentation
Once you have selected a topic, write the objective of the presentation in a single concise
statement. The objective needs to specify exactly what you want your audience to learn from
your presentation. Base the objective and the level of the content on the amount of time you
have for the presentation and the background knowledge of the audience. Use this statement to
help keep you focused as you research and develop the presentation.
II. PREPARING THE CONTENT OF YOUR PRESENTATION

 Step 4: Prepare the body of the presentation

 The body of the presentation is where you present your ideas. To present your ideas
convincingly, you will need to illustrate and support them. Strategies to help you do this
include the following:
 Present data and facts
 Read quotes from experts
 Relate personal experiences
 Provide vivid descriptions
WHAT IS STRUCTURE?
Structure is important because a well organized presentation creates an impression that you
know what you are talking about-you will gain the audience's trust and they will be more likely
to listen to you.

A structure provides a logical flow so that you can provide the information that the audience
needs to follow your presentation. The structure will help you become more comfortable
following this flow. There is a natural structure to presenting and the following structure
formalizes this process.
WHAT IS STRUCTURE?
There is a natural structure to presenting and the following structure formalizes this process.
Purpose
To determine your purpose ask "What are the main points I want my audience to take away from
my presentation"? This provides focus for you and the audience is clear on what they will gain
listening to your presentation.

Audience pre-assessment
It is important to identify the characteristics, knowledge and needs of your audience so that you
are delivering the 'right' presentation to the 'right' audience. Know who your audience is, what
they want/need to know and what is their background. This step is done before the presentation
or throughout.
WHAT IS STRUCTURE?
There is a natural structure to presenting and the following structure formalizes this process.
 Opening your Presentation/Bridge
 This is also known as the hook. It is designed to grab the audience's attention and provide
them with a reason to be interested in the presentation.
 Body of Presentation
 This is the major portion of the presentation. It is necessary that it connects directly to your
purpose or bridge. Cover enough points to achieve your purpose (no more) and be sure to
support your points clearly and concisely.
 Closing your Presentation
 This is the final impression that you will leave with your audience-make sure it is a strong one.
Connect back to your purpose and let them know where you have been. Leave your audience
with a clear understanding of your points.
STRUCTURE OF A PRESENTATION

A presentation:

has an introduction, body and conclusion

may include visual aids
is usually followed by questions and discussions
may also have a handout for the audience to take away.
STRUCTURE OF A PRESENTATION
Introduction
The introduction should orient the audience to your subject and purpose. To capture interest and
set up rapport, it should tell the audience what to expect.

Be sure to carefully define the central point (or thesis) that is the basis of your talk and ensure
that your supporting argument or information relates closely to it.

If you are not proceeding from an already written assignment, it might help to think of your
introduction as funnel-shaped, with the content coming out of the funnel.
STRUCTURE OF A PRESENTATION
STRUCTURE OF A PRESENTATION
Useful language for presentations Staging the
introduction
FUNCTION EXAMPLES OF SIGNPOST LANGUAGE

Greet the audience Good morning/afternoon distinguished guests/ladies and gentlemen/colleagues (whichever
is appropriate)

Express special acknowledgements if appropriate I’d especially like to welcome…

I’d like to thank…

Signal question/discussion opportunity There will be time for questions and discussion at the end of my talk.
If you have questions, please feel free to interrupt.

Introduce your carefully defined topic I’d like to talk to you about…

Explain the topic area and purpose This presentation will cover mainly…
I am going to show that…
I will argue that…
Dispose of a distraction or side issue Before I start, let me clarify one point…
My discussion will not cover…

Briefly preview the organisation of the body of your talk The main points I will make are, first… second… and third…
The subject can be examined under the following headings…
We can divide this area into a number of fields. They are…

Provide important history and/or definitions As background, it’s important to note that…
By X I mean…

Remind the audience of the topic and give it status So we can see that (the topic) involves…
WHAT IS STRUCTURE?
A presentation: has an introduction, body and conclusion. may include visual aids. is usually
followed by questions and discussions.

Introduction
A good introduction does four things:

 Attracts and focuses the attention of the audience

 Puts the speaker and audience at ease
 Explains the purpose of the talk and what the speaker would like to achieve
 Gives an overview of the key points of the talk
WHAT IS STRUCTURE?
Body
The body of the presentation should meet the promises of purpose and information made in the
introduction.

The structure of the presentation is crucial.

Whether you organise:

chronologically,
by priority,
or theme
 Staging the body of your talk

FUNCTION  EXAMPLES OF SIGNPOST LANGUAGE

 Begin the body of the talk The first point I would like to address is…
Let me first raise…

 Develop the first point For example…

This is especially important because…

 Sum up the first point So, we can see that…

 Introduce the second point Secondly, I’d like to turn to…
 Develop the second point An important statistic in this area is…
It means that…

 Sum up the second point It’s evident that…

 Bring in the final point Finally, we need to look at…
 Develop the final point This situation exists because…
It’s worth noting that…
 Sum up the final point Thus, the result is…
 Emphasising a point I’d like to stress that…
Let me repeat that…
 Introducing a contrasting idea By the way…
Incidentally…
 Sum up the body of the talk and remind listeners of the topic To summarise…
To review, we have found that…
What I have been saying is that…
 Conclusion

Similar to a written assignment, the conclusion again states your main points and what
has been learned or shown but you also may raise implications inherent in the
findings and offer creative recommendations.
 
STAGING THE CONCLUSION

FUNCTION EXAMPLE OF SIGNPOST LANGUAGE

Signal the end of your talk is coming In conclusion, we have examined the question that…
Remind the audience again of the topic

Remind the audience of your argument We discussed…

Remind the audience of your findings The evidence shows that…

Alert the audience that you have thought deeply about the topic An important implication is…

Offer an innovative, provoking thought to take away I would like to offer recommendations to address this. Firstly…
Secondly…

Signal the end of your talk Thank you for your time and attention today.

Signal the question/discussion session I’d now like to open the floor for questions and discussion.
 WHAT IS STRUCTURE?
Body
 The body of a presentation must be presented in a logical order that is easy for the audience to follow and
natural to your topic. Divide your content into sections and make sure that the audience knows where
they are at any time during your talk. It is often a good idea to pause between main sections of your talk.
You can ask for questions, sum up the point or explain what the next point will be. If you have an OHT
with an outline of your talk on it, you can put this on the projector briefly and point to the next section.

 Examples, details and visual aids add interest to a presentation and help you get your message through.
Here are some questions you can ask yourself about the examples you include:

 Are they relevant to the experience of the audience?

 Are they concrete?
 Will the audience find them interesting?
 Are they varied?
 Are they memorable?
 WHAT IS STRUCTURE?
Conclusion
A good conclusion does two things:

Reminds the audience of your key points

Reinforces your message
II. PREPARING THE CONTENT OF YOUR PRESENTATION

 Step 5: Prepare the introduction and conclusion

 During the opening of your presentation, it's important to attract the audience's attention and build their
interest. If you don't, listeners will turn their attention elsewhere and you'll have a difficult time getting it
back. Strategies that you can use include the following:

 Make the introduction relevant to the listeners' goals, values, and needs
 Ask questions to stimulate thinking
 Share a personal experience
 Begin with a joke or humorous story
 Project a cartoon or colorful visual
 Make a stimulating or inspirational statement
 Give a unique demonstration
III. PRACTICING AND DELIVERING
 Step 6: Practice delivering the presentation
 In addition to planning the content of your presentation, you need to give advanced thought to
how you want to deliver it. Do you want to commit your presentation to memory, use cards to
guide you, or read from a script? Or, you might want to use a combination of methods. To help
you decide, read the advantages and disadvantages of the four delivery methods described
below.